Related

The poll was conducted on behalf of the National Post, Global Television and Newstalk 1010 from Friday to Sunday, after Mr. Ford was grilled for a past DUI conviction in Florida and comments he made about migrants to Toronto.

It is the largest lead for Mr. Ford since he joined the race in March. Mr. Smitherman entered the race as the clear frontrunner, but two polls in June put the former deputy premier and Mr. Ford neck and neck, within the margin of error.

Ipsos Reid pollster John Wright said the new numbers reinforce the notion of a two-person race. “And the Smitherman team better take a good hard look at these numbers, because if there’s any wake-up call, it’s now,” Mr. Wright said.
Sarah Thomson, the publisher of Women’s Post, is third, with 10%. Joe Pantalone, the deputy mayor, is at 9%, while Rocco Rossi came in fifth, with 7% of respondents choosing him to be mayor.

About 4% of respondents went with “other,” while the percentage of undecided voters has dwindled to 21%.

The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.9%, 19 times out of 20.

Mr. Wright said Mr. Ford has tapped into the sentiment expressed by voters who were surveyed by Ipsos Reid last year, only 12% of whom felt they were getting value for their taxes.

“Rob Ford has a very simple message: ‘I’m going to put the customer service back in City Hall, and we’re going to kick some butt.’ It may sound like a pretty simple methodology, but it’s worked,” Mr. Wright said.

“The bottom line is that Rob Ford has not only established himself as a credible candidate for mayor, but after everything we have seen in the past week, he’s still leading.”

Indeed, the poll found that most Torontonians (55%) “agree” (23% strongly and 32% somewhat) that “regardless of what has been said or alleged about Mr. Ford, he could be a great mayor of Toronto.” About 36% “disagree” with that statement.

On Wednesday, Mr. Ford defended remarks he made that Toronto has to “take care” of its current population, “before we start bringing in more people” — comments his opponents suggested represented a “turning point” in the race.

Then on Thursday, his campaign scrambled to explain Mr. Ford’s past run-ins with the law, including a 1999 alcohol-related conviction in Miami (he said he refused to take a roadside Breathalyzer test), and a charge for possession of a marijuana joint, which was later dropped. Mr. Ford had initially denied the marijuana allegation to a newspaper reporter because he said he had forgotten.

Ipsos asked people their impressions of the candidates: Three in 10 (30%) said they have a worse impression of Mr. Ford “over the last few weeks,” while 20% said their impression has improved. About 41% say their opinion has not changed.

Impressions of Mr. Smitherman improved for 12%, and worsened for 15%. Most (61%) said there was no change.

Mr. Ford reacted to the latest numbers with an earnest “wow.”

He said his message of improving customer service and slashing taxes is resonating across the city.

“Even people downtown, right across the city. There’s frustration, and that’s the bottom line…. They’re fed up, they don’t trust anyone. But a lot of people have said, ‘Rob, I’ve never voted in my life, I’m voting. I’m voting for you this time,’ ” Mr. Ford said.

Stefan Baranski, a spokesman for George Smitherman, said, “you can’t read too much into this” because “people really start to pay attention after Labour Day.”

“There are 63 days left in this campaign, and we saw last week that every week matters. We’re going to be working very hard to get George’s vision out there in the final, critical, two months of the campaign,” Mr. Baranski said.

Mr. Smitherman was “mainstreeting” in Korea Town on Monday. Mr. Ford had nine meetings lined up, including a lunch with the high school football team he coaches.

At one point, a man riding a bike darted across traffic on a downtown street, dumped his bike at the foot of the curb and hurled himself at Mr. Ford, who was speaking to reporters.

“I want to shake his hand,” the fan said, pulling open the lapel of the councillor’s suit jacket to check out the brand. “It’s a cheap suit,” Mr. Ford said, laughing.

“Things are going well. I get this response wherever I go,” Mr. Ford said. “I just have to stay focused, we’ve got 10 more weeks and I’m going to go as hard as I can.”

Almost Done!

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.